The Northern Trust is the largest geographical trust in Northern Ireland, with an area spanning 1,733 square miles. 42.4% of Northern Trust residents living rurally in settlements of under 5,000 people, including open countryside (2021 census).
Legislation is in place. The Rural Needs Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 imposes a duty on public authorities to have due regard to rural needs, and for connected purposes.
Social and economic needs of people in rural areas should be taken into account when developing, adopting, implementing or revising policies, strategies and plans, and when services are being designed and delivered.
The Northern Trust is committed to reporting and monitoring obligations in accordance with the Rural Needs Act. We report annually on how we comply with the duty to consider the social and economic needs of people who live rurally.
We report through annual monitoring reports to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), which oversees the operation of the Act.
Rural needs annual monitoring reports
- Rural Needs Annual Monitoring Report 2024 to 2025 (Opens in Ms Word)
- Rural Needs Annual Monitoring Report 2023 to 2024 (PDF)
- Rural Needs Annual Monitoring Report 2022 to 2023 (PDF)
- Rural Needs Annual Monitoring Report 2021 to 2022 (Opens in Ms Word)
- Rural Needs Annual Monitoring Report 2020 to 2021 (Opens in Ms Word)